For this question I'm referring to sports in which men and women can compete together on equal terms (even if they often don't). For example, rock climbing would count (if they climb the same rock and are measured by the same metrics), while the hammer throw would not (since men and women throw different hammers). Competitions where score is given out by a jury count too.

I'm wondering if there is a sport of this kind in which the world's best player is/was female. It doesn't have to be current; I'd also like to know if it has happened at any point in history. I'm aware that determining "the best player" isn't always easy, but looking for something where the best female players in the world are truly competitive with the best male players.

I know it's outside the scope of this site, but the closest I know is in chess, where the greatest female player of all time ([Judit Polgar][1]) 1) broke several records for which men also qualify and 2) won individual games against the world champion. However she was never world champion, with a peak world ranking of #8.

  [1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judit_Polg%C3%A1r